Running across a mountain peak, rushing between the Baobab trees was the Zinger King, keeping pace with the 44th Empyrean Tusk. It was mentally counting the time required for the Zinger Queen egg to hatch, anxious all along.
There were no Mammoth Clansmen near Inala's house. It had already inspected the house completely, detecting no signs of anyone living there. Therefore, as long as it watched the house's entrance, it could detect if any Mammoth Clansman approached it.
The Zinger King leaped from a mountain edge and glided towards the next mountain, keeping steady and aerodynamic to ensure it didn't lose much altitude. After crossing over a kilometre in distance, it barely lost a hundred metres.
Landing on the cliff, it climbed over the hundred metres in a hurry and reached the peak. Following that, it began to sprint through the forest on the peak, closing the gap between it and the 44th Empyrean Tusk.
The Zinger King had the most important job of overseeing the hatching of the Zinger Queen. Moreover, it commanded the entire army of Zingers. With every second that ticked, it became more and more tense, for time was almost up.
But even now, it couldn't feel the hatching queen's aura. A sense of uneasiness flowed into its mind, making it unsettled. Soon, the hatching time was up, but there was no sign of the queen's presence.
A minute passed, followed by another, but there was still nothing. By now, the Zinger King realised that something had happened. In worry, it leaped across the cliff and glided towards the 44th Empyrean Tusk, trailing towards it from its back.
Making an extended arc, it evaded the range of the shockwaves generated by the slapping tail and landed on the roof of Inala's house, peering inside, "Kuu?"
"KHAAAAAA!"
The Zinger King roared in anger upon seeing a Mud Viper in the living room, sporting a bulging body, with the bulge shaped like an egg. The Mud Viper was asleep, intending to digest its gains, coiled peacefully.
At the sight of its detestable appearance, the Zinger King raged and leaped inside the living room. With a swipe of its claws, the Mud Viper was shredded into bits.
"Kuuuu!" The Zinger King hurriedly peeled off the Mud Viper's stomach piece, lifting the egg out of it, despairing. But the moment its claws came into contact with the egg, its lifeforce was sucked into it.
"Krahh!" The Zinger King shrieked in pain, but a moment later, it calmed down, relieved that its lifeforce was being sucked into the egg. That at least meant the egg wasn't destroyed. But aware that if the egg sucked anymore of its lifeforce, it wouldn't hatch, the Zinger King decisively severed its hand.
The egg dropped on the floor as the blood coating it slithered down. Only now did the Zinger King observe the difference. The eggshell's texture was different from its memories, resembling an Empyrean Tusk's exoskeleton instead.
The size too was different. It was a tad larger. And lastly, it didn't absorb any lifeforce from the floor—the Empyrean Tusk's lifeforce. The Zinger King was confused, wondering if the Mud Viper's interference had messed up everything.
As it was deep in worry, the egg on the floor shot up suddenly, catching it off guard. It slammed into the Zinger King's chest and rapidly absorbed its lifeforce once again.
The Zinger King was flabbergasted, unable to understand why such a thing was happening. It thrashed about on the floor, letting out shrieks, calling out for help. Right at this moment, a second egg flew out from a nearby room and slammed into its head, absorbing its lifeforce from there too.
The head and the chest, two important areas had been targeted. The Zinger King couldn't rip them off like it did when the egg latched to its hand. It needed time to carefully cut off the tough fur on the chest region, and even more for the head region. A mistake and the organs within might come in contact with the egg, opening the gateway to its death.
But, time was the last resource in its arsenal as a third egg slammed into its face, masking its shrieks.
With three eggs absorbing its lifeforce, its body shrivelled up quickly, draining away all its strength. It stared at the ceiling, seeing its brethren gliding over, rushing towards its rescue. But at that moment, a ball of mud slammed into the broken ceiling and expanded, covering the hole before hardening up.
The Zinger King was stunned before turning its head weakly to stare at an old lady, hunched over, sporting bark-like skin. Her eyes were sunken and her expression was deranged. She used a bone stick as support to walk out from her hiding spot nearby.
Her presence was so weak that even when she stood before the Zinger King, it was unable to notice her. She was akin to an ant. Even ants had a stronger presence, which was why the Zinger King hadn't sensed her.
Clip! Clop!
The old lady who seemed well past her expiry date dragged herself to the Zinger King and stood before it. Her hunched form inched closer as she opened her mouth, one that transformed to reveal a jaw resembling a Zinger. No, it seemed superior.
The egg on the Zinger King's chest seemed full as it floated up and arrived before the old lady's mouth. She opened her jaw and crunched its ridiculously hard shell open casually, gulping down the contents within as if it were the most delicious Elixir in the world.
As the contents of the egg flowed down her throat, her appearance visibly changed. She seemed to have grown young by at least five decades, almost becoming middle-aged. Her hunched back became erect. Her body gained significant mass, becoming robust.
Luscious, dark-brown hair grew out of her head, reaching her hips, dense. Slowly, an air of arrogance permeated within the living room, originating from her.
The second egg flew up as she grabbed it and cracked it open, drinking its contents to grow further younger, reaching her prime, entering her late teens.
[Y-You…what are you?]
The Zinger King's voice resounded, filled with shock. The woman was able to understand its language as she revealed a confident smile, muttering softly, "Thank you."
The Zinger King too was able to understand her words, unable to comprehend what the heck was happening as it breathed its last, becoming a sack of dried bones, absorbed of all its lifeforce.
[How…do you have our Queen's aura?]
"I am one," The woman muttered as the Storage Lantern on her hip floated out and grew in size. Its top floor door opened as the third egg flew into it, "I'll save up this lifespan for emergencies."
The Storage Lantern reverted to its miniature size as the woman condensed Prana in her palms, creating two eggs, aging up in response, entering her late thirties. Her Prana surged into the two eggs and modified their shape, transforming them into a hand each.
"Phew, that was easy." Sighing in relief, the woman gasped, able to relax a little. Her body morphed immediately after. Her shoulders widened while her bones increased in size and density. Her reproductive organs shifted in gender as a few seconds later, a man stood in place, late thirties in age, sharing similarities with the woman.
It was Inala.